Hand-brewed coffee is another interpretation of coffee, a gentle extraction of coffee. The beauty is that the whole process is engaging and focused. You can ignore the chaos around you and get a moment of peace. No matter what kind of hand brewing method, there is a theory and meaning, but there is only one purpose and principle: to better release the flavor of coffee.
If you don’t focus enough on hand brewing, you won’t be able to make a good cup of coffee. But in addition to due concentration, "gentleness" is also needed. This "gentleness" refers to the delicate grasp of the process, such as the amount of coffee beans, grinding degree, water temperature, water quality, water flow, extraction time, and even the technique and timing of water injection.
The quality of coffee flavor must depend on the coffee beans themselves. Front Street recommends that high-quality Arabica be the first choice, because it has many different classifications and will show different aromas depending on the production area.
Front Street Jade Manor Diamond Hill, Front Street Bird of Paradise, and Front Street Brazilian Cerato all have slight acidity and rich nutty aroma. They are Arabica coffees that are neither sour nor bitter in taste, so they are most suitable for novices who are just getting started.
If you want to drink coffee that is not too bitter, buy lightly roasted Arabica. The first choices are Front Street Yirgacheffe, Front Street Oiran, and Front Street Cherry Tomato Kenya. These beans come from the high altitudes of Africa and have rich floral and fruity aromas, as well as a tea-like aftertaste;
For those who are afraid of sourness, it is recommended to buy Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling. This is the most famous representative product in Asia. Because it has been screened many times to remove defective beans, it has a clean flavor and clear aroma, and can taste the characteristics of herbs, sandalwood, spices, and caramel.
When determining the coffee beans, you need to pay attention to the following points when brewing by hand: 1. The speed of water flow through the coffee powder; 2. The temperature of the water flow; 3. The thickness and state of the powder; 4. The depth of roasting; 5. The length of roasting time; 6. Some details vary according to different coffee appliances.
Before brewing, we first need to prepare the following utensils: hand brewing pot, filter cup, sharing pot, grinder, filter paper, electronic scale, thermometer, and a pack of delicious Front Street Dingding Yirgacheffe coffee beans. The coffee you drink is fresh. All coffee beans shipped from Front Street are roasted within 5 days and support 24-hour delivery to ensure that everyone receives the coffee beans at their best tasting period.
Front Street. Yirgacheffe Fruit and Tintin Cooperative Handmade Parameters
Filter bowl: Hario V60
Water temperature: 92℃
Amount of powder: 15g
Pink to water ratio: 1:15
Grinding degree: medium to fine grinding (Chinese standard No. 20 screen pass rate 80%)
The grinder plays a very important role in Pour over(V60) coffee. The thickness and uniformity of the coffee powder will directly affect the taste of a cup of Pour over(V60) coffee. If the coffee powder is too coarse, it will be easily under-extracted and the taste will be bland; if it is too fine, it will be easily over-extracted and the taste will be bitter.
Front Street uses a tool to adjust the grinding degree - China's No. 20 0.85mm standard sieve. For medium-light roasted coffee beans, Front Street always uses a 75-80% sieving rate, which corresponds to fine sugar particles, while for medium-dark roasted coffee beans, Front Street uses 70-75%, which corresponds to coarse sugar particles. Yirgacheffe here is a medium-light roasted high-altitude coffee bean. Front Street hopes to extract more rich aromatic substances, so he chooses a No. 20 standard sieve with a pass rate of 80%. The store uses an EK43s grinder with a scale of 10.
Based on past brewing experience, Front Street recommends that new players who are just getting started use the three-stage water filling method. The three-stage extraction is conducive to more fully dissolving flavor substances during extraction, increasing the taste level, and at the same time avoiding over-extraction of coffee caused by soaking for too long. If there are 15 grams of coffee powder, a powder-to-water ratio of 1:15, and a total water volume of 225 ml, the three water levels are divided into: 30 ml, 95 ml, and 100 ml. The weight on the electronic scale will show: 30 g, 125 g, and 225 g.
First, place the folded filter paper in the filter cup and wet it with water to fit it more closely to the filter cup. Prepare hot water and a measuring thermometer, and at the same time pour 15 grams of ground coffee powder into the filter cup to clear the weight of the electronic scale.
Inject 30g of water into the first section and steam for 30 seconds. Start timing while injecting water. Inject small water flow at the center point throughout the process and start to circle outwards. Pay attention to the need to moisten the entire powder layer.
After 30 seconds, start to steadily inject the second section of 95g water with a larger flow of water. The purpose is to lift the entire powder layer. The water column needs to be injected vertically and evenly. At this time, the timing scale shows 125g, and the injection is completed in about 55 seconds.
When the liquid level drops to half of the level, start using a small flow of water to inject 100 grams of the third section in a small circle. Try to control the water flow not to be too large, which will easily disperse the coffee powder layer and cause insufficient extraction. The final amount of water injected is 225 grams, and the completion time of trickling filtration is about 2 minutes. After removing the filter cup, shake the coffee liquid in the sharing pot evenly and start tasting.
The amount of water injected in each section is not fixed. We can adjust it based on our accumulated hand brewing experience and our understanding of coffee beans. Front Street understands that coffee brewing is an experiment based on science. If we want to learn how to brew coffee well, we need to delve into and understand the true meaning of each brewing parameter. In this way, we can easily find ways to experiment and establish a brewing framework that suits us.
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
